Homicides in England and Wales at lowest level since 1980s

The number of homicides reported in England and Wales has fallen to its lowest level in more than 40 years.

Police recorded 499 such cases in the year to September 2025, a fall of 7% on the previous 12 months, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

It is the lowest annual total since 1983, when 482 homicides were recorded.

Homicide includes offences such as murder, manslaughter and allowing the death of a child.

The ONS said the drop was largely driven by a 23% fall in the number of people killed by knives and other sharp instruments. There were 174 such deaths during the period.

The overall number of knife crime offences has also fallen by 9% to 50,430, while the number of crimes involving firearms also decreased by 9% to 4,851.

Billy Gazard, of the ONS, said: "While the crime survey paints a relatively stable picture, many aspects of violent crime and theft recorded by the police have fallen in the past 12 months.

"Homicide and gun crime are at the lowest levels seen this century, while knife crime has also decreased.

"The majority of police forces have seen knife crime fall in the past year, including the larger urban Greater Manchester, Metropolitan and West Midlands areas.

"This is supported by NHS data, which continue to show a decrease in hospital admissions for assault by a sharp object."

Figures published earlier this month by the Metropolitan Police showed homicides in London had dropped to the lowest level in more than a decade.

The Met recorded 97 homicides in the capital in 2025, down 11% from 109 in 2024, and the lowest number since 2014, when 95 homicides were recorded.

The latest ONS report shows that the number of robbery offences remained broadly similar at 82,354, however, shoplifting offences were up from 492,660 to 519,381 - an increase of 5%.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the government was "having real success tackling the crimes that terrorise communities", but added that "the crimes that tear at the fabric of communities, like shop theft and shop robbery, continue to rise and we must do more".

"That is why we are putting 13,000 more neighbourhood officers on the beat, and have invested £2 billion more in forces across the country since we took office," Ms Mahmood said.

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Her comments come following the Home Office's announcement on Monday of the biggest policing shake-up in decades.

The planned reforms include a significant cut in the number of regional police forces, the creation of a National Police Service - dubbed the "British FBI" - to tackle crimes such as terrorism and fraud, and an increase in the number of facial live recognition vans.

The government has already committed to recruiting 13,000 more neighbourhood policing officers by 2029, with 3,000 recruits expected to be in post by spring this year.

(c) Sky News 2026: Homicides in England and Wales at lowest level since 1980s